These 15 plays were chosen from a pool of over 500 plays created by YPT students in the spring and fall of 2010! Featured plays were written by students at Bancroft Elementary School, Bell Multicultural High School, Lafayette Elementary School, Maya Angelou Public Charter School, Plummer Elementary School, Swanson Middle School, Watkins Elementary School and Wilson High School.

On April 11, YPT will present plays by our elementary and middle school students that explore topics that range from a flatworm’s fear of peanut butter to the challenge of having superpowers. Plays presented April 11 will be family-friendly and suitable for all audiences.

On April 12-13, YPT will present plays by our older students that explore themes that range from navigating a relationship with a gay parent to the devastating impact of addiction on families. Plays presented April 12-13 include mature themes and language and may not be suitable for children under thirteen.

We hope you will join us as we honor and celebrate the incredible work of these young people.

Funded in part by the DC Commission on the Arts & Humanities and the National Endowment for the Arts. Major support also provided by the Mayor’s Office on Latino Affairs (OLA), the Capitol Hill Community Foundation, the Commonweal Foundation, Wachovia-Wells Fargo, Verizon, Pepco, Cardinal Bank and Target.

2011 Plays and Playwrights

Monday, April 11

***Elementary and Middle School Night – Plays are family-friendly and appropriate for all audiences.***

What happens when a regular house cat drinks milk infused with toxic waste? If comic books have taught us anything, it’s that this cat will develop super powers! Marco Anderson tells the story of Mr. Jinks, fearsome feline, in his play Dr. Four Arms Trilogy.

Marco is in the fifth grade at Plummer Elementary School.

Meet Bob. Bob is lazy. Bob doesn’t think this is a problem, but his mom disagrees. Is there anything that will make this slob change his ways? Find out in The Day After Bob Said, "Yeah, Right" by Ann Gill.

Ann is a seventh grader at Maya Angelou Public Charter School.

First there was American Idol. Then there was Glee. Then there was The Sing Off. Musical competition captivates again in Kelly’s Big Performanceby Nneamaka Iwobi. Kelly must out-sing (the much more popular) Cairo in order to prove herself. Does she have what it takes?

Nneamaka is in the fifth grade at Stuart Hobson Middle School.

Jack and Ronaldo are young entrepreneurs. At first, they’re drawn together by their love of money, but it’s that same love that drives them apart. Paul McCoyer presents a hilarious satire titled Money, Money, Money.

Paul is in the fifth grade at Bancroft Elementary School.

In her play A Jewel of a Date, Dakota Wenberg introduces us to Supergirl – Superman’s daughter, of course. Supergirl, a.k.a. Liz, must balance her life as a super hero with her life as a regular teenage girl.
That can be very tricky…

Dakota is an eighth grader at Swanson Middle School.

Flatworm’s Courageous Actby Lauren White is the tale of an unusual super hero: Flatworm. Flatworm’s one and only weakness is his fear of peanut butter. Will Flatworm find the courage to save the day?

Lauren is in the fifth grade at Lafayette Elementary School.

Tuesday, April 12

***Middle and High School Night – Plays contain mature content and may not be appropriate for children under thirteen.***

Johana Cedillos weaves an intricate and fantastic tale of
danger and revenge in her play Scarred with Faces. Rable wakes up
on the morning of her sixteenth birthday to discover mysterious faces on her arm. (Spoiler alert: no, she didn’t get a bad tattoo.) Follow Rable on a magical journey to the truth.

Johana is a junior at Bell Multicultural High School.

Shannon Marshallexplores the human face of gentrification in her play Society Unjust. A 73 year old woman is offered a large sum of money for her house. Her choice becomes increasingly difficult, and she must decide which is more important: her past or her future?

Shannon is a junior at Bell Multicultural High School.

Internal Woundsby Javier Reyes is a harrowing story of family and addiction. After the death of his father, Andrew turns to drugs to ease his pain. Can his mother pick up the pieces of her family?
Can Andrew heal the pain he has caused?

Javier is a junior at Bell Multicultural High School.

A young gay woman and a very conservative man are thrown together in Amber Faith Walton’s play Changing Tides: Judge Me Gently. Can a simple conversation change a man’s mind? How powerful are our words?
And what is really at stake?

Amber is a junior at Bell Multicultural High School.

Wednesday, April 13

***Middle and High School Night – Plays contain mature content and may not be appropriate for children under thirteen.***

Saviya Brown explores one young man’s struggle to find a better life in her play Taken 4 Granted. Derrick is involved with a gang as a high schooler, but as a rising college freshman he wants to leave that life behind. What propels Derrick, and what has the power to hold him back?

Saviya is a junior at Bell Multicultural High School.

Two archaeologists make an amazing find – but the discovery only leads to more questions. Brandon Klein unlocks the mystery of a city buried deep under the ocean in his play Fall of Atlantis. How did Atlantis fall? And what drove the people who perished there?

Brandon is a junior at Wilson High School.

In a small Brazilian town, a boy named Jason works for a prominent doctor, using his knowledge of natural medicine to heal the people in his community. But Jason faces serious challenges at home. Could two strangers from the United States be his ticket out? Find out in Forest Bloodby Joe Myers.

Joe is in the eighth grade at Swanson Middle School.

Taj Vereen presents a mind-bending play about the nature of existence with The Concept of Conception. How powerful is the human mind?
Who has control over reality?

Taj is a junior at Bell Multicultural High School.

Rasheeda Williams explores the relationship between a gay woman and her daughter in A Thin Line Between Her & Us. Morgan doesn’t have a problem with her mother’s relationship with Alexa. Unfortunately, her peers don’t feel the same way. Can Morgan’s mother help her find
the strength to stand up to bullying?

From April 11-13, 2011, Young Playwrights' Theater presented the New Play Festival, an annual celebration of bold new voices. 15 student-written plays from the In-School Playwriting Program were presented over three nights.

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